Haven’t ridden one, but I’ve definitely thought at times I’d have been better off buying something like a Honzo than a 140mm full squish bike for the vast majority of the trails around here. I’m sure it’s a blast!
Dem bicicletas, doe
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Haven’t ridden one, but I’ve definitely thought at times I’d have been better off buying something like a Honzo than a 140mm full squish bike for the vast majority of the trails around here. I’m sure it’s a blast!
I feel this makes sense.[user not found] wrote: ↑Thu Aug 29, 2019 3:35 pmHere's my take.troyguitar wrote: ↑Thu Aug 29, 2019 2:03 pm I want to understand your assertions and the facts, I don't fucking care who is right. I assume that you are right and am trying to get you to explain it to me in a way that makes sense.
You flat out said that better riders will benefit more from better stuff. Everything I can find anywhere using any kind of empirical test or theoretical model shows the exact opposite - that all returns are diminishing. The stronger you get (or the better your stuff), the less improvement you should see from both equipment and strength increases... because drag is not linear.
The only exception I can think of is that faster downhill riders might benefit more from aero gear during descents.
What am I missing?
There's two parts to the equation - the rider and the bike.
A lighter, faster, more aerodynamic bike will benefit a weaker rider by allowing them to conquer hills and ride at a faster speed than a heavier, slower bike. That's easily proven.
However, a weaker rider doesn't have the stamina or endurance to ride for long on any grade, let alone uphill. So, the benefits will not be as obvious when starting out. Once you start to get into proper cycling shape, you'll realize the benefits of having a better bike, but I don't think you're there yet.
Make the investment in yourself first, build up a solid base, and then make the move to a bike. The jump in speed and efficiency will be tenfold simply because riding a slower bike has made you a stronger rider quicker than if you were to have the best possible bike from the start. Think of it like wearing a fat suit. Eventually you shed the fat suit and you'll realize the gainz you've made.
To me it comes down to this: improving as a rider is free and simple, improving the equipment is expensive and more complex.
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2019 Kona Big Honzo CR.
Carbon 27.5+ hardtail. Revelation fork and Sram NX Eagle drivetrain. Slapped on some Shimano Saint SPD pedals.
Ordered a riser handlebar and will swap out the plunger style dropper button for a lever.
First ride yesterday was I am going to enjoy the hell out of this bike.
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That’s a perfect spec. In time if you want to upgrade it would be easy to drop a few pounds with a lighter cassette and wheelset. But nothing needs to be swapped out at all. Ride it just like it is. The current gen Revelations are just a little heavier Pikes so they are really rad too.Apex wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:59 am2019 Kona Big Honzo CR.
Carbon 27.5+ hardtail. Revelation fork and Sram NX Eagle drivetrain. Slapped on some Shimano Saint SPD pedals.
Ordered a riser handlebar and will swap out the plunger style dropper button for a lever.
First ride yesterday was I am going to enjoy the hell out of this bike.
Nice choice Apex.
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What the fuck. I found my HR monitor yesterday and just tried to set up the damn thing on Strava today...
https://support.strava.com/hc/en-us/art ... Mobile-App
They fucking removed support for it 3 days ago.
So - What are you guys using to record this shit?
https://support.strava.com/hc/en-us/art ... Mobile-App
They fucking removed support for it 3 days ago.
So - What are you guys using to record this shit?
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Ok, had to make a wahoo account and link that to strava to get access to the HR monitor... It still had a weird spike during the first 2 minutes of the ride (it was downhill and I was barely pedaling, no way it was over 200 bpm) but the rest of the data looks accurate.
After taking 4 full days off of the bike to finally have fresh legs, I picked up another full mph average and a little over half a mph on the flat-ish segments. 16.x overall, 18.4 flats, on a brief 36 minute ride not counting the water break in the middle I'm averaging 170 bpm.
On the flat-ish segments, I'm averaging 175 bpm to maintain 18 mph. Is riding supposed to be this fucking hard?
After taking 4 full days off of the bike to finally have fresh legs, I picked up another full mph average and a little over half a mph on the flat-ish segments. 16.x overall, 18.4 flats, on a brief 36 minute ride not counting the water break in the middle I'm averaging 170 bpm.
On the flat-ish segments, I'm averaging 175 bpm to maintain 18 mph. Is riding supposed to be this fucking hard?
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Only when you suck all of the fun out of it.
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If your goal is to go faster then change your tires to these in a size 28ctroyguitar wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 4:21 pm Ok, had to make a wahoo account and link that to strava to get access to the HR monitor... It still had a weird spike during the first 2 minutes of the ride (it was downhill and I was barely pedaling, no way it was over 200 bpm) but the rest of the data looks accurate.
After taking 4 full days off of the bike to finally have fresh legs, I picked up another full mph average and a little over half a mph on the flat-ish segments. 16.x overall, 18.4 flats, on a brief 36 minute ride not counting the water break in the middle I'm averaging 170 bpm.
On the flat-ish segments, I'm averaging 175 bpm to maintain 18 mph. Is riding supposed to be this fucking hard?
https://www.jensonusa.com/Continental-G ... -Road-Tire
And/or sign up for a training plan.
https://trainright.com/proven-9-week-ho ... ning-plan/
It's not hard. Someone else has already done it. So it's the easiest thing in the world. Just follow what they did.
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Go to hell. Working my ass off to achieve what you can do with no effort is not fun.fledonfoot wrote:Only when you suck all of the fun out of it.
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This is my point.troyguitar wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:51 pmGo to hell. Working my ass off to achieve what you can do with no effort is not fun.fledonfoot wrote:
Only when you suck all of the fun out of it.
I’ve not touched my road bike for about six months. It’s still bolted to the trainer in my office. Most of my riding this summer has been lift assisted bike parks and bombing down hills, with an occasional trail ride in the mix. My GERD and reflux issues have been so awful in the last year that anything more than half an hour of 90%+ effort has me puking up bile on the side of the road/trail.
You’ve been riding for all of what... a month?
This isn’t cars, karting or autocross. You can upgrade the bike all you damn well please, but until you upgrade the thing that powers it, it’s almost all a waste.
Your legs will take a few months to come in, and your lungs, too. Your core strength will improve to sustain a 3 hour ride every couple weeks. This whole thing is all a long game, and you’re not going to see instant results like you would expect at the track from $60 here and $150 there thrown at parts.
Equipment will only get you so far while you’re growing into this sport. I speak from experience, having just got back into riding seriously about 3 years ago. I’ve pissed plenty of money away on things that are flashy but I don’t see all the tangible benefits from because I’m not at that level yet... but I’ve done it because it’s enjoyment for me. My bike more capable than my skill set.
I fear your obsession of getting faster via equipment is going to kill your desire to ride because it’s no longer fun.
Your goal right now should be to just get on the bike and ride, and have some goddamned fun while you’re at it.
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And that’s still more than your wife’s done...[user not found] wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 10:11 pmYou're doing more than what Fled's done on the choad bike.troyguitar wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 9:51 pm Go to hell. Working my ass off to achieve what you can do with no effort is not fun.
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Troy... further to my point... I just went back to Strava and looked at your regular route. In about 10.3 miles you’ve knocked off 7 minutes in the span of a month. You’re going to hit diminishing returns at some point, but then you’ll find yourself doing that same 10.3 loop at a good speed but with lower effort.
But in the span of a month you’ve gone from 14.6mph to 16.9. That’s pretty fucking impressive. Eventually you’ll plateau, but then after that you’ll be able to hold whatever that speed is for longer distances.
You should really start looking at some alternative routes to mix it up a bit if you can. Riding the same loop over and over gets boring.
But in the span of a month you’ve gone from 14.6mph to 16.9. That’s pretty fucking impressive. Eventually you’ll plateau, but then after that you’ll be able to hold whatever that speed is for longer distances.
You should really start looking at some alternative routes to mix it up a bit if you can. Riding the same loop over and over gets boring.
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Good speed with lower effort is exactly when I think this might actually be fun... basically the same idea as going downhill.
For now it's just a painful grind that will hopefully keep me from getting fatter.
For now it's just a painful grind that will hopefully keep me from getting fatter.
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If you’re seeing a pattern of this becoming a painful grind, do something to mix it up. Have a torture day on a short hilly route. Have an easy flat day at low pace to recover, and another day at speed. Find a route with a loop you can circuit a few times to attack, either as a time trial or repeat a hill climb.troyguitar wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 10:42 pm Good speed with lower effort is exactly when I think this might actually be fun... basically the same idea as going downhill.
For now it's just a painful grind that will hopefully keep me from getting fatter.
It’s only a painful grind if you make it one. Start making new routes. Google maps has a cycle option to play with. Use it.
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Was gone.[user not found] wrote: ↑Sun Sep 01, 2019 10:13 pmDamn. That's a steal.
I'd have a hard time not buying that.
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Yeah, I didn’t get up there early enough. I don’t think they had a single 2019 56cm roadie left by the time I got there. A few gravel and cross bikes, and mostly only the really high end models. The place was pretty cleaned out.
Tons of MTBs, but I’m covered there.